It could be the drive-through at McDonalds or the parking lot at Foodland.
If there’s time to get things done, Walter Young finds a way. The Waianae football coach is busy with his young children before and after practice up and down the Leeward Coast. He’s also busy with his football kids. The Seariders will meet Mililani in the Oahu Interscholastic Association Division I semifinals tonight at Aloha Stadium.
Waianae outlasted Farrington last week, 27-21, to advance. Last year, the Seariders toppled Mililani in the OIA quarterfinals.
Young, a teacher and head of the math department at Waianae, chatted with Hawaii Prep World on Thursday.
Walter Young
Waianae football
Q&A
HPW: Mililani has the kind of attack that can score in bunches, but your team has a history of going toe to toe with the Trojans. The antidote has been the best defense is offense. Ball control.
Young: You know what we do is run the ball. Everybody knows it.
HPW: Coach York expressed concerns about containing the Waianae ground game as best as they can without giving up the big pass. He’s concerned with your wideouts and slots, too.
Young: Everyone’s going to put some people in the box. Then we can throw some of those one on ones outside, but I don’t think he’s worried about it. We’re playing a great-coached Mililani team. We’ve got to go in there with our game plan, control the clock and the line of scrimmage. Everyone talks about their offense, but their defense, the first string probably gave up seven points all season.
HPW: Your team had three incredibly tough games to start the year, including two extremely difficult preseason games for your fairly inexperienced squad. Your offensive and defensive lines have become cohesive.
Young: They’ve come a long way. They’ve worked hard at it. They took it hard the first couple of games, but they got better along the way. We’re not at the top of our game yet, but they’re willing to work hard every week.
HPW: Do you love these kids?
Young: I love all of these kids. They mean a lot to me. They give all they have and that’s all you can ask for.
HPW: The game with Mililani is classic, a contrast of styles.
Young: It’s a matchup of two good teams. All you can do is prepare the best you can. The team that makes the least mistakes and executives will come out on top.
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